Why We Love Backyard Weddings

A couple of weeks ago we coordinated and styled our first backyard wedding. We fell in LOVE with the personalized details as well as the special meaning of the venue!! The couple, Ellen and James, are such eccentric yet laid-back individuals that no other venue would have worked more perfectly to showcase their unique style and love for one another. We were so inspired by Ellen and James' big day, so we're sharing why we absolutely love their choice of venue and some of the details that brought the special day to life!

1. A Meaningful Place

Often backyard weddings are held at a friend or family member's home. That was the case for Ellen and James, as the ceremony was held at her parents' house and the reception took place at his parents’ house. This made for an extra special day for everyone who attended and kept them at peace throughout the day in the comfort of their homes.

The ceremony, pictured below, only had 12 attendees which were their immediate family! This kept it intimate and stress free, as they were able to relax and keep things on a more loose timeline.

Ceremony_Ellen&James/ Photography by Jacob Giampa

2. More Freedom With Your Space

Whether you decide to set-up a large tent, bring in your own hand-crafted bar and beer, or make a grand entrance on a decorated golf cart (or, do all three as James and Ellen had), it makes for easier planning when you’re not working against the venue’s timeline and restrictions. If you have the space for hosting at a family members home, or even your own, there are unlimited possibilities of what you can do to the space!

Since most of the 100 guests did not attend the initmate ceremony, they wanted to make a fun, engaging surprise entrance! The guests huddled in the tunnel of tree's on the property with cow bells and noise makers awaiting the bride and groom entrance. Thats when we started the fog machine, played 'Scotland the Brave' and Ellen and James came through to kick off the party and be welcomed in as Mr and Mrs!

Golf Cart Entrance_Ellen&James/ Photography by Jacob Giampa

3. Cost Effective

We all know that booking a venue can get expensive, so planning a backyard wedding can definitely help save on costs. We also loved the use of antique pieces that belonged to James’ parents for the gift, appetizer and dessert tables. This saved on costs of not needing to rent specialty furniture and created an even more beautifully styled event.

Ellen and James are very creative people--So they made a lot of the personal items and decor pieces themselves. Ellen even sewed her own wedding dress from James' grandmothers wedding dress fabric!! They also dug into their resources and friends and family helped contribute to different aspects of the day--from the wedding cake, the bar tenders, to the appetizers made by the mom's--each of these items not only saved on budget but also added to the more personalized special day!

Favor Table_Ellen&James/ Photography by Jacob Giampa

4. A Beautiful Setting

James and Ellen’s day was so stunning. From the never-ending green backdrop of trees to guests enjoying themselves while playing yard games and dancing under the stars, the day couldn’t have been more fun and beautiful!

After dinner, Ellen and James snuck away for a shoot in the barn next-door and inside James' parents home to get those truly special pictures. Not only is the photography breathtaking--But the special meaning of the locations make these images even that much more heartwarming.

Ellen&James/ Photography by Jacob Giampa

5. Your Party Can End Later

Planning at certain venues also means beginning and ending your big day according to their timeline. With the backyard setting, Ellen and James had the freedom to continue their party late into the evening. Guests danced the night away – it was such a fun, carefree night!! They even had faceprint for all of the guests to just let loose the rest of the night through!

Screen Shot 2015-07-31 at 11.46.32 AM

Thank you, Ellen and James for letting us be apart of your special day!! It was truly one that will go down in the books for us and inspired our passion for doing more backyard events!!